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New York governor declares monkeypox a ‘disaster emergency’

July 30, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul issued an executive order Friday in response to the growing monekypox outbreak in the state and declared it to be a “disaster emergency.”

“After reviewing the latest data on the monkeypox outbreak in New York State, I am declaring a State Disaster Emergency to strengthen our aggressive ongoing efforts to confront this outbreak,” Gov. Hochul said. “More than one in four monkeypox cases in this country are in New York State, and we need to utilize every tool in our arsenal as we respond. It’s especially important to recognize the ways in which this outbreak is currently having a disproportionate impact on certain at-risk groups. That’s why my team and I are working around the clock to secure more vaccines, expand testing capacity and responsibly educate the public on how to stay safe during this outbreak.”

According to data by the Centers Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, New York has the highest reported cases of monkeypox.

There have been 1383 reported cases of monkeypox in New York, according to state data and almost 5,000 in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the executive order will allow the state to respond more quickly to the monkeypox outbreak and enable health care workers to help get more New Yorkers vaccinated.

Hochul’s declaration came a day after monkeypox was considered an “imminent threat” to the public health by New York state’s health commissioner, Dr. Mary Bassett.

Commissioner Barrett said in a statement that the designation meant that “local health departments engaged in response and prevention activities will be able to access additional State reimbursement, after other Federal and State funding sources are maximized.”

Monkeypox is primarily spread from person to person contact through close and physical contact. A fever, muscle ache, chills, headache and fatigue are some of the symptoms. Sores and painful rashes also develop on a person’s body.

Most cases in the U.S. have been reported among the gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men community and related to male-to-male sexual contact. Though health officials have repeatedly stressed that the virus can affect anyone who has close contact with people who have monkeypox. Those with weakened immune systems, pregnant people and children under the age of 8 may be at heightened risk for severe outcomes, according to the CDC.

“Every American should pay attention on monkeypox,” Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra told reporters Thursday. “Monkeypox is not COVID, but it is contagious. It is painful and can be dangerous.”

The World Health Organization declared the monkeypox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern last week.

ABC News’ Matt J. Foster and Meredith Deliso contributed to this report.

Democrat Rep. Dean Phillips says Biden shouldn’t run in 2024

July 29, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn, said publicly that he would not support President Joe Biden in 2024 amid a slew of new polling reflecting Democrats’ desire for a new presidential candidate.

The White House on Friday dodged probing by ABC News’ Molly Nagle into what the administration thought about the House Democrat’s comments.

“Look, I’m going to stay where I am,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told ABC News. “The President intends to run in 2024. We are ways away from 2024. We are going to continue to focus on doing the business of the American people by delivering for families by lowering costs for families.”

Phillips on Friday called for a “new generation” of leadership on Friday in the White House in an interview on the Twin Cities-based radio show WCCO-AM.

“I think the country would be well-served by a new generation of compelling, well-prepared, dynamic Democrats who step up,” Phillips said.

“I think it’s time for a generational change,” said Phillips, who told host Chad Hartman he expects more Democrats to start speaking out about their concerns. “And I think most of my colleagues agree with that.”

President Biden is experiencing heightened levels of doubt from inside his own party, with a New York Times/Siena College poll earlier this month showing 64% of Democratic voters saying they would prefer a new standard-bearer for a White House bid in 2024. His job-approval rating remains at 33%, according to the same poll.

“I have respect for Joe Biden, I think he has — despite some mistakes and some missteps, despite his age — I think he’s a man of decency, of good principle, of compassion, of empathy and of strength,” Phillips added.

Biden and other White House officials have attempted to defend his electability in recent weeks, however.

Biden fired back in early July at ABC News reporter Ben Gittleson, who asked about Democrats who’d prefer he didn’t run again.

“Read the poll,” Biden said, referring to the NYT/Siena College poll. “92% said if I did [run again], they’d vote for me.”

Jean-Pierre also cited the 92% figure when asked to react to the poll– which, administration supporters were also quick to note, did show him winning a hypothetical rematch with former President Donald Trump.

“You know, there’s going to be many polls,” she said. “They are going to go up and they are going to go down. This is not the thing that we are solely focused on.”

Polling data also shows that a majority of Americans would not prefer the former president seek another White House term either.

Trump has teased, but has not officially confirmed a plan to run for another White House term, while Biden has said multiple times that he will seek reelection.

“When you have such a sour, negative political environment, voters in general are looking for change,” GOP pollster Robert Blizzard told ABC News earlier this week. “They’re looking for new voices, new people.”

-ABC News’ Ben Siegel contributed to this report.

Family demanding answers in death of woman who fell from moving patrol car

July 29, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(DECATUR, Ga.) — The family of a Georgia woman who died after she was taken into custody and fell out of a moving police patrol car earlier this month is demanding answers in her death.

Brianna Grier, 28, was taken into custody on July 15 after two Hancock County Sheriff’s Office responded to her home in Sparta, Georgia, authorities said.

Her mother had called 911 because her daughter was having a mental health crisis, according to civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is representing the family.

While being transported to the sheriff’s office, Grier fell out of a patrol car and sustained “significant injuries,” the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI), which is investigating the death, said in a statement.

Grier suffered brain trauma and was in a coma before she died on July 21, according to Crump.

“Yet again, we have another African American citizen killed in just an unbelievable way while in the custody of the police,” Crump said during a press briefing Friday.

The briefing comes two days after GBI released new details in the incident.

According to GBI, Grier was placed in the backseat of the patrol car while handcuffed with no seatbelt on. The rear passenger side door was never closed before they drove away, GBI said.

Before the deputies placed her in the car, Gier was on the ground “refusing to get in the patrol car” and “made a statement that she was going to harm herself,” GBI said.

Both the rear driver’s side door and rear passenger side door were open while the deputies put Grier in the backseat, but they only closed the rear driver’s side door before leaving the scene and driving a short distance, GBI said.

“The investigation shows that the deputy thought he closed the rear passenger side door,” GBI said. “Body camera footage reveals the deputies had no other contact with Grier from the time she was placed in the car until she fell out of the moving car.”

The family is calling for more transparency as they try to make sense of what happened, including the release of the body-camera footage.

“We’re trying to get answers of what really happened, that’s all we want to know,” Grier’s father, Marvin Grier, said during Friday’s press event. “We want to know what happened.”

“That was my child,” he continued. “That was my child.”

The incident is still under investigation by GBI.

Hancock County Sheriff Terrell Primus told protesters gathered outside the sheriff’s office on Wednesday that he plans to release body-camera footage of the incident once GBI’s investigation is completed, the Union-Recorder reported.

“A lot of people have already drawn their own conclusions,” he said, according to the publication. “Some people already feel as though we have things to hide. But we do not have anything to hide. The video footage will show evidence based on what has been stated already.”

Crump said his team plans to perform an independent autopsy once her body is released from GBI, and that they will investigate what led to Grier, a mother of 3-year-old twin daughters, falling out of the car while it was moving.

“That’s what we are primarily for — is to get answers and demand justice,” Crump said. “What this is really about is those 3-year-old little babies [who are] going to have to grow up without their mother.”

Gerald Griggs, president of the Georgia State Conference of the NAACP, joined the family on Friday and called for accountability.

“To the Hancock County sheriff, it’s time to be transparent. It’s time to be accountable,” he said. “To the GBI, it’s time for y’all to meet with this family. To the governor, it’s time for you to recognize, again, that Georgia has a police accountability problem.”

“Georgians of all color deserve to feel protected in the custody and control of law enforcement,” he said.

Måneskin premieres video for “If I Can Dream” Elvis cover

July 29, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Måneskin has premiered the video for the band’s cover of the Elvis Presley song “If I Can Dream.”

The clip features the Italian rockers recording at Memphis’ famed Sun Studio and touring Elvis’ Graceland museum. It also features footage from the new Elvis movie, for which Måneskin originally recorded the cover.

You can watch the “If I Can Dream” video streaming now on YouTube.

Elvis, which was directed by Baz Luhrmann and stars Austin Butler in the title role, premiered in theaters in June. Its soundtrack also includes Jack White, Tame Impala and Stevie Nicks.

Gerry Beckley releases CD version of new solo album, debuts apparel collection showcasing his photos

July 29, 2022 by WDNY Radio

The deluxe CD version of America co-founder Gerry Beckley‘s latest solo album, Aurora, was released Friday. Coinciding with the disc’s arrival, a capsule collection of T-shirts and hooded sweatshirts showcasing the singer/songwriter’s photography is now available.

Beckley partnered with New York-based fashion designer Todd Snyder to create the limited-edition apparel collection, which features three T-shirts and three hoodies, each boasting a different photo taken during Gerry’s travels. The pieces can be purchased now at ToddSnyder.com and select retail stores.

Beckley is a longtime photography enthusiast, and while touring, he began snapping a photo each day and emailing it to family and friends. Some of Gerry’s photos are included in the packaging of the physical versions of Aurora.

“Gerry is this total style maven — cars, clothes, eyewear. He’ll email me out of the blue to suggest a classic item we should make, and his photographs are an extension of this unique point of view,” says Snyder, who’s a longtime friend of Beckley’s. “He makes normal things look artful, and his pictures are modern takes that get us to reconsider places we might otherwise take for granted.”

As previously reported, Aurora is an 11-song collection that Beckley recorded during the COVID-19 pandemic at his two home studios — in Sydney, Australia, and Venice, California. The album’s tracks include tunes that began as unfinished demos and scratch recordings that date back as far as the early 1970s, as well as new songs written during the past two years.

One of the tunes, “Tickets to the Past,” was co-written by Gerry’s co-founding America bandmate Dewey Bunnell, who also sings on the track.

Aurora was released on digital formats last month, while a deluxe vinyl version is due at a later date.

Thank you for being a friend: ‘The Golden Girls’ restaurant opens in Los Angeles on Saturday

July 29, 2022 by WDNY Radio

If their hearts are true, grab a pal or a confidante and head The Golden Girls pop-up restaurant, which opens for business in Los Angeles on Saturday — which is National Golden Girls Day.

Fans of the beloved sitcom can live like Dorothy, Rose, Blanche and Sofia in their Shady Pines apartment, thanks to the new, full-service restaurant experience called The Golden Girls Kitchen.

The eatery is presented by the events company Bucketlisters and was the brainchild of Derek Berry, the guy who brought to life interactive experiences based on Breaking Bad, Saved by the Bell and other fan favorites.

For $50, you can sample items like The Dorothy: A Miami Style Sandwich, Sophia’s Lasagna, Blanche’s Georgia Style Cookies, Rose on Rosé and, as was often eaten in the girls’ kitchen, cheesecake.

Of course, there are plenty of Instagram opportunities to fill your feed, like a replica of the Girls’ iconic kitchen, and their relaxing lanai.

If you can’t swing it to L.A., the experience will be headed to New York, San Francisco, Chicago, and, appropriately for the Florida-set show, Miami through next Spring.

Listen to 2019 live version of Neil Young’s 1995 tune “Throw Your Hatred Down”

July 29, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Neil Young has made available a live version of his 1995 song “Throw Your Hatred Down,” recorded with his backing group Promise of the Real while on tour in Europe in 2019, as an advance digital track from his upcoming album Noise & Flowers.

“Throw Your Hatred Down” originally appeard on Mirror Ball, Young’s 1995 collaborative album with Pearl Jam.

As previously reported, Noise & Flowers will be released on August 5 on audio and video formats. The album and film, which were recorded during Young’s nine-date 2019 European tour with Promise of the Real, are dedicated to Neil’s longtime friend and manager Elliot Roberts, who died at age 76 just a couple of weeks before the trek was launched.

Noise & Flowers, which can be preordered now, will be available on CD, as a two-LP vinyl set, via digital formats and as a deluxe CD/two-LP/Blu-ray collection featuring the film on the Blu-ray disc. In addition, a standalone Blu-ray can be purchased exclusively at Young’s Greedy Hand Store. The film was co-directed by Young and his wife, actress Daryl Hannah, under their Bernard Shakey and dhlovelife pseudonyms.

Those who purchase Noise & Flowers at the Greedy Hand Store will receive a high-res digital download of the album from Young’s Xstream Store at his Neil Young Archives website.

Here’s Noise & Flowers full track list:

“Mr. Soul”
“Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere”
“Helpless”
“Field of Opportunity”
“Alabama”
“Throw Your Hatred Down”
“Rockin’ in the Free World”
“Comes a Time”
“From Hank to Hendrix”
“On the Beach”
“Are You Ready for the Country”
“I’ve Been Waiting for You”
“Winterlong”
“F***in’ Up”

McCarthy doesn’t ‘recall’ talking to Cassidy Hutchinson on Jan. 6

July 29, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., on Friday said he did not “recall” speaking to former Trump White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson on Jan. 6 after the former White House official testified about their conversation under oath to the Jan. 6 select committee.

Last month, Hutchinson, a former top aide to Trump White House chief of staff Mark Meadows who was in the West Wing on Jan. 6, testified that McCarthy called her angrily on Jan. 6 after former President Donald Trump told his supporters in a speech to march to the U.S. Capitol.

“He then explained the President just said he’s marching to the Capitol. ‘You told me this whole week you aren’t coming up here. Why would you lie to me?’ I said, ‘I wasn’t lying to you, sir. We’re not going to the Capitol,'” Hutchinson said in her testimony.

She also said McCarthy texted her, “Do you guys think you are coming to my office?”

McCarthy, who has rebuffed the committee’s subpoena for his records and sworn testimony regarding the Capitol riot, said he didn’t remember talking to Hutchinson, and only called White House aides to “find the president.”

“I don’t recall talking to her that day. I recall talking to [Trump aide] Dan Scavino, I recall talking to Jared [Kushner], I recall talking to Trump,” he said Friday.

“If I talked to her, I don’t remember it. If it was coming up here, I don’t think I wanted a lot of people coming up to the Capitol. But I don’t remember the conversation.”

McCarthy said “I don’t remember” being concerned about Trump’s comments at his Jan. 6 rally because he “didn’t watch the speech.”

“I was working, so I didn’t see what was said, I didn’t see what went on until after the fact,” he added.

McCarthy has previously said he spoke to Trump on Jan. 6 and encouraged him to get his supporters out of the Capitol.

He later said Trump “bears responsibility” for the Capitol riot, but quickly moved to mend his relationship with Trump, opposing his second impeachment and visiting with him at his Palm Beach, Florida, club.

In leaked audio of GOP leadership calls first reported by the New York Times, McCarthy suggested to colleagues he would encourage Trump to resign and said, “I’ve had it with this guy.” Asked later about the remarks, McCarthy told reporters he spoke hypothetically.

McCarthy also opposed efforts to set up an independent outside commission to investigate the Capitol attack, after initially deputizing a top Republican to negotiate a bipartisan agreement with Democrats.

Asked Friday about Trump potentially announcing a 2024 election bid ahead of the congressional midterms, McCarthy replied, “The only thing the president and I have talked about is winning in 2022.”

Relatives receive remains of loved ones who died in migrant tragedy

July 29, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Three members of the Olivares family left their homes in Veracruz, Mexico, for a better life in America. Instead of finding the employment they hoped would lead to a better future, they were among the 53 migrants who were found dead in a tractor-trailer that was left abandoned in the sweltering heat on a back road outside of San Antonio, Texas.

The site is now a roadside memorial, marking the spot where, on June 27, dozens died in the highest death toll of any suspected human smuggling attempt in United States history.

Thousands of miles away, families of the victims are just now starting to say their final goodbyes.

The family of brothers Jair Olivares, 19, and Giovanni Olivares, 16, and their cousin Misael Olivares, 16, had to fundraise in Mexico to pay for funeral costs while mourning their loss.

“They wanted to build a house and start a business. Here there is work, but it is very poorly paid… that’s why they went to look for a better life,” Valencia, the mother of Jair and Giovanni Olivares, told Reuters.

The family said they had agreed to pay a smuggler $10,000 for each teen.

Jair and Giovanni Olivares’ father said the last text message he received from his 19-year-old son was that the teens were in the trailer and hoping the smuggler would return for them shortly.

In the small town of Tzucubal, Guatemala, Maria and Casimiro Guachiac waited for weeks to have their son’s body sent back to them from the U.S.

Their son, Pascual Melvin, was just 13 years old.

Maria Guachiac said that before her son left, he said he was going to the United States to study, find a job and build a house.

Pascual Melvin was not alone. He was traveling with Wilmer Tulul, his cousin, who was also 13 years old and died in the trailer.

Both boys grew up in the town of Tzucubal, an indigenous Mayan community located in the area of Sololá, nearly 100 miles from Guatemala City where more than 70% of the population lives in poverty, according to the most recent census data in Guatemala.

Both boys left to find work in the United States to help their families.

The last time Casimiro Guachiac spoke to his son was three hours after the boys had arrived in San Antonio. Relatives in the United States had helped arrange the boys’ journey and said they agreed to pay the smugglers $6,000 for each boy before they arrived in San Antonio.

Guachiac said that his son had told him they were in a trailer, but that was the last time he heard from him.

In Honduras, funerals also are being held for those lost in the trailer tragedy. Brothers Fernando Jose Redondo Caballero and Alejandro Migue Andino Caballero and Margie Tamara Paz, a girlfriend of one of the brothers, died in San Antonio.

Many of the families of the victims, and those who survived, are afraid of speaking out. They say they fear retaliation from the unlawful organizations that orchestrated the trip. Many families say they still owe smugglers money, despite the journey ending in tragedy.

Guatemalan Foreign Minister Mario Adolfo Búcaro Flores said that the human smuggling industry is “sophisticated” and “transnational.”

“We formed a task force with the United States, Mexico and Honduras, working together with the district attorneys and the intelligence officers to be able to dismantle the organized crime industries,” Búcaro told ABC News Live Prime.

According to Búcaro, smugglers charge up to $15,000 to shepherd migrants across the border.

“We know that the numbers are growing, but it doesn’t just depend on the side of the government,” Búcaro said.

Four arrests have been made in the migrant deaths and two of the alleged smugglers, Homero Zamorano, Jr. and Christian Martinez, face charges that may result in life in prison or the death penalty. Both remain in federal custody and have not yet entered pleas.

The families in Honduras, Guatemala and Mexico are left praying to find peace and justice as they lay their loved ones to rest.

“I hope that in the United States, we’ll have justice,” said Maria Guachiac.

‘Minions’, ‘Thor’ push monthly box office past $1 billion for the first time since the pandemic began

July 29, 2022 by WDNY Radio

‘Minions’, ‘Thor’ push monthly box office past billion for the first time since the pandemic began

It took a bunch of yellow mumblers and the gods of thunder to do what hasn’t been done since the COVID-19 pandemic began: push the domestic box office past the billion dollar mark for a single summer month.

July began with Minions: The Rise of Gru becoming a blockbuster right out of the gate. Perhaps due in part to the “Gentleminions” TikTok trend, the movie starring the voice of Steve Carell opened to more than $100 million in the States, setting a July 4 box office record. That movie has since passed $300 million on these shores.

Thor: Love and Thunder opened July 8 to $143 million, on its way to a domestic haul of $280 million as July comes to a close.

Also still boosting the box office for the month of July is the year’s biggest film, Top Gun: Maverick. That film has made $637 million domestically and nearly $1.3 billion worldwide.

The Wrap points out that also contributing to July’s $1.1 billion finish was the late June release Elvis, which has made more than $70 million here, as well as last weekend’s $49 million opening of Jordan Peele‘s Nope.

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